One of the most significant contributors to Ron DeSantis’ campaign for governor of Florida in 2022 just made a donation of one million dollars to a political entity associated with Francis Suarez, the mayor of Miami, who is a possible challenger to DeSantis in the Republican primary.
On March 7, according to the records kept by the state, Ken Griffin, CEO of the hedge fund Citadel and a prominent financial booster of Republican campaigns around the country, wrote a check for one million dollars to be given to Suarez’s committee.
Miami For Everyone is a group that is registered with the state’s division of elections and was used to generate millions of dollars for Suarez’s mayoral reelection campaign in 2021; however, the majority of those funds were not spent because he did not face any significant opposition in the contest.
The contribution made by Griffin has not been mentioned anywhere else.
Griffin’s contribution could raise questions among Republican donors who are watching to see who the billionaire businessman will back in a bid for the White House. The mayor is publicly considering a run for the Republican presidential nomination in 2024, and Griffin’s contribution could raise eyebrows among those donors.
Griffin contributed a total of tens of millions of dollars to Republican candidates’ campaigns around the country, including a contribution of $5 million to DeSantis’ reelection campaign in 2022.
Griffin stated to Politico that DeSantis “has a tremendous record as governor of Florida, and our country would be well-served by him as president.” This statement was made after DeSantis won a second term as governor of Florida.
However, it is possible that Griffin does not fully support DeSantis. Griffin, who has made it clear that he does not intend to support former President Donald Trump, is still studying the Republican field and has disagreed with some of DeSantis’ positions recently, according to a recent report published by The New York Times. Griffin has also made it clear that he does not expect to support any candidate for the Democratic nomination.
It is anticipated that DeSantis will formally launch his presidential candidacy within the next few weeks, and Suarez has stated that he will make his choice in the near future. In the past few months, the mayor has made trips to Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina in order to meet with voters while he mulls over a possible bid for office.
On Tuesday, Suarez and a spokeswoman for Griffin both opted not to comment on the situation.
At a function that was hosted at Miami-Dade College in the month of November, the two engaged in a cordial chat that lasted for thirty-five minutes. During that time, the mayor spoke positively about Citadel’s relocation from Chicago to Miami, and Griffin praised Suarez’s enthusiasm for bringing the hedge fund to the city.
